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As a small business owner, getting the credit card of your favorite hotel brand can be a smart choice. This allows you to earn valuable rewards on your business spending that you can use for personal or business travel. Plus, many business credit cards have bonus categories that aren't available to owners using personal credit cards for business expenses. If you prefer Hilton hotels, The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card can help with valuable points and perks for your next trip.
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card overview
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
- Annual fee$195
- Welcome offerEarn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $6,000 in purchases within the first six months of Card Membership
- Ongoing Purchases APR19.99% - 28.99% Variable
- Rewards rate
- 12x points on eligible Hilton purchases
- 5x points on other purchases made using the Hilton Honors Business Card on the first $100,000 in purchases each year
- 3x on all other eligible purchases
- Benefits
- Enjoy complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status
- You may receive an upgrade to Hilton Honors Diamond status if the total eligible purchases on your card during a calendar year are $40,000 or more
- Enjoy up to $240 back each year for eligible purchases made directly with Hilton
Additional benefits
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card’s primary benefits include complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status and up to $240 annual (up to $60 per quarter) Hilton credit.
Hilton Honors Gold includes all the benefits of standard and Silver membership, as well as space-available room upgrades, daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast (depending on the hotel brand and region), and an 80% points bonus on stays.
Note that you can get upgraded to Diamond status if you spend $40,000 in a calendar year. You would receive this status for the rest of the year you qualify and the entirety of the following calendar year.
For the up to $240 Hilton credit, you need to make purchases directly from Hilton properties to receive up to $60 in statement credits per quarter. This could include bookings and incidental charges, like a restaurant bill you charge to your room.
How to earn rewards
The main ways to earn points with the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card are by earning its welcome offer as a new cardholder, using it to make business purchases, and referring new business owners to the card.
The earning rate especially rewards business owners who often stay at Hilton hotels and resorts. The everyday earning rate for other eligible purchases isn’t nearly as high.
How to redeem rewards
Hilton Honors members have numerous ways to redeem their points. However, the best value typically comes from booking Hilton hotel and resort award nights. This is especially true if you can take advantage of Hilton’s 5th Night Free benefit, which allows Hilton Honors elite status members to receive a fifth night free on award stays of five nights or more.
Members have access to more than 7,000 locations worldwide across 19 distinct hotel brands, so there's likely a hotel that fits your budget and style anywhere you want to travel.
Hilton eliminated its standard award chart and switched to dynamic pricing, so it can be challenging to know exactly how much a room costs before booking it. In many instances, the cost of a room in points mimics the cash price. However, it is still possible to book award reservations for exceptional value.
You can use the Hilton Honors Points Explorer tool to quickly search for award stays at different Hilton hotels in your selected area. Part of the benefit of using this tool is that you can adjust the nightly points price (between 5,000 to 95,000 points per night) to find options that fall within your preferred range.
Here are some of the other available Hilton Honors redemption options:
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Experiences
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Lyft rides
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Shopping
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Rental cars
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Pool points with other Hilton Honors members
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Convert points to airline miles
Hilton Honors American Express Business Card pros
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Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold elite status
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Ability to upgrade to Hilton Honors Diamond elite status when you spend $40,000 in a calendar year
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Free employee cards to earn rewards on their purchases
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Integration with QuickBooks to reduce data entry
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Complimentary National Car Rental Emerald Club Executive Status
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No foreign transaction fees
Hilton Honors American Express Business Card cons
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Limited bonus categories. The card does not offer bonus points for common business expenses, like office supplies, telephone services, or dining.
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Annual fee. The card charges a $95 annual fee, which may not be worthwhile for some business owners.
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No intro APR offer. Business owners who want an intro APR offer to avoid or reduce interest charges cannot take advantage of interest-free financing with this card.
Where can you use the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card?
As an American Express card, the Hilton Honors Business credit card can be used at 99% of merchants that accept credit cards within the U.S. Many business owners showcase their willingness to accept American Express by placing a sticker in their storefront window or by the checkout register.
While American Express is growing its international acceptance, customers cannot use it at as many merchants when traveling internationally. Some credit cards charge foreign transaction fees of up to 3%, but these fees are waived with the Hilton Honors Business card. If your company does business with foreign suppliers or if you travel internationally, you can use this card without hidden foreign transaction fees being tacked on.
How to make a Hilton Honors American Express Business Card payment
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Make payment online
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Set up recurring payments
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Call (800) 472-9297 to make a payment by phone
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Mail payment to American Express, P.O. Box 96001, Los Angeles, CA, 90096–8000
Hilton Honors American Express Business Card customer service info
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Customer service is available 24/7
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Phone number: (800) 492-3344 or the number on the back of your card
Alternative cards to consider
While the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card offers tremendous value for business owners who prefer Hilton hotels and resorts, there are better options for some. If it’s not the card for you, consider these alternatives.
American Express® Business Gold Card
- Annual fee$375
- Welcome offerEarn 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $15,000 on purchases within the first 3 months
- Rewards rate
- Earn 4x Membership Rewards points on the top two eligible categories (out of 6 total categories) where your business spends the most each month. Although your top 2 categories may change each month, you will earn 4x points on the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these categories each calendar year, then 1x after that (only the top 2 categories each billing cycle will count towards the $150,000 cap; terms apply).
- 3x points on flights and prepaid hotels booked on AmexTravel.com
- 1x points on all other purchases
- Benefits
- Earn up to $20 in monthly statement credits (up to $240 annually) for eligible U.S. purchases at FedEx, Grubhub, and office supply stores
- The Business Gold Card comes in three metal designs — Gold, Rose Gold, and White Gold
- Your spending limit is flexible and adjusts based on factors such as your purchase, payment, and credit history
Why we like it: The Amex Business Gold Card is a general rewards card that earns Amex Membership Rewards points rather than Hilton Honors points. This gives you a lot more flexibility with your points since you can redeem them for multiple travel-related options. Points can be redeemed for statement credits, travel, gift cards, and more. Customers can also transfer points to over 20 airline and hotel partners, including Hilton Honors.
Read our full Amex Business Gold Card review
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
- Annual fee$150
- Welcome offerEarn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases in your first 6 months of Card Membership
- Rewards rate
- 12x points on eligible purchases charged directly with hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio
- 6x points at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations. 4x points for each dollar on U.S. online retail purchases
- 3x points on all other eligible purchases
- Benefits
- Earn a Free Night Reward after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year
- Spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year and earn Hilton Honors Diamond Status through the end of the next calendar year
- Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad
Why we like it: The Hilton Honors Surpass Card is a personal card rather than a business card. If you don’t necessarily need a business credit card, the Hilton Honors Surpass presents an attractive opportunity to earn Hilton points and take advantage of valuable benefits. One of these is the ability to earn a free night reward each year after spending $15,000 on your card.
Read our full Hilton Honors Amex Surpass review
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
- Annual fee$95
- Welcome offerEarn 90,000 points after spending $8,000 in first 3 months (that's $900 cash back or $1,125 toward travel when redeemed through Chase Travel℠)
- Rewards rate
- 3x on the first $150,000 spent each account anniversary year in the following categories: shipping purchases; advertising purchases via social media sites and search engines; internet, cable, and phone services; and travel
- 1x on all other purchases with no earning cap
- Benefits
- Redeem points for cash back, gift cards, travel and more
- Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel through Chase Travel
- Covers your new purchases for 120 days against damage or theft up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account
Why we like it: The Ink Business Preferred earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points rather than Hilton Honors points. These rewards are more flexible because you can transfer them to over 12 Chase travel partners, including Southwest Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, and World of Hyatt. This gives you more opportunities to redeem rewards differently if you like to be flexible with your travel plans.
Read our full Ink Business Preferred review
This article was edited by Ben Walker (CEPF, CFEI®)
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